Outside the cars, side-by-side
racing looks positively serene.
Inside, it’s a totally different
story. The main image and the
video are the same move from
two very different perspectives
The 360-degree panning onboard cameras of
the IndyCar Series show that side-by-side
racing can be anything but a smooth ride
Words Dave Lewandowski Main Image Robert Laberge/Getty Images
C ruising down the Interstate at
the posted 70mph, an
occasional twinge of
trepidation sets in when another
vehicle pulls alongside in the passing
lane. Both hands grip the wheel and
visual diligence is applied as the cars
push forward about five feet apart
for what seems like minutes until the
pass is completed.
Multiply the speed by three, close
the gap to inches apart and you have
what Team Penske’s Helio
Castroneves calls “scary close.”
Racing side by side on ovals might be
dramatic TV, but it’s not necessarily
entertaining for IndyCar Series
drivers, who prefer efficient
overtaking scenarios.
In the season-opener at
Homestead-Miami Speedway,
ESPN’s onboard cameras captured
just how close Castroneves and
Andretti Green Racing’s Tony Kanaan
raced side by side during a
particularly tense stretch on the
variably banked oval. At one point,
their Dallara chassis mimicked an
accordion in motion, and a tire mark
was noticeable on the side of
Kanaan’s No. 11 Team 7-Eleven car
after their encounter.
“I was like, ‘Whoa! That’s crazy,’ ”
Castroneves recalls. “It’s a very tense
situation and one that you don’t like to
be in for an extended period of time.
But neither of us is going to lift to give
position, and the cars are so equal that
INCHES APART AT 200-PLUS
“My brain hurts...” Hey, too much
side-by-side racing can do that to
oval aces like Helio Castroneves
side by side happens a lot.”
Not as physically demanding as the
road/street courses on the schedule,
oval racing is still challenging because
of the speeds that create higher risks.
Side by side at 220mph is about as
risky as you can get, and respect is
greatly appreciated.
“It’s more mentally tiring because
you have to concentrate doubly hard
on driving your line, driving the car as
fast as it will go, plus concentrating
on the other car and anticipating
what he’s going to do,” A.J. Foyt
Racing’s Darren Manning says.
“But when you have somebody
side by side it doubles, that’s what’s
really tough. You just want to get past
somebody because then you can drive
your line and have a lot more optimum
performance. You obviously want it to
be fast, but sometimes it’s a little bit
loose. You generally want to make it as
comfortable as possible but still be
fast, and it’s certainly not comfortable
when you’re side by side.”
The aerodynamics of the Dallara
make it stable, if not comfortable, in
such situations. Aerodynamics has
played a major role in auto racing
since the late 1960s, when the first
inverted wings appeared in some
formulas. With the introduction of
the ground-effect packages a few
years later, cars used a third element
(the underbody) to make downforce.
The basic idea is to create an area
of low pressure underneath the car
2008 INDY500 PREVIEW 21
Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images
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